Electrolytic cell



F. H. MILLER.

I ELECTROLYTIC CELL.

APPLICATION FILED APR.5. 1917.

1,390,575. Pawnwdsept.13,1921.

. L Til Z INVENTOR ATITORNEY UNITED .STATES FREDERICK H. MILLER, 01: WILKINSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, AS

1 HOUSE ELECTRIC &; MANUFACTURING VANIA.

PATENT OFFICE.

SIGNOR TO'WESTINIG- COMPANY, A CORPORATION or PENNSYL- ELECTROLYTIC CELL.

Specification o To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, FREDERICK H. MILLER, acitizen ofjthe United States, and a resident of VVilkinsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Electrol tic Cells, of which the following is a speci cation.

My invention relates to electrolytic cells, such as condensers, lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like, and it has for its object to provide an electrode construction forcells of the character indicated which shall present a large surface area to the action of the Figs. 3, 4 and 5 electrolyte of the cell in proportion to the volume occupied by the electrode and whlch shall therefore be adapted fornse where the cell is required to occupy as little space as possible. r

In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is a plan view, with parts shown in section. and with the cover removed, of an electrolytic cell constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. '2 is'a side view, partially in elevation and partially in section, of the structure of Fig. 1, the section being taken substantially along the line II-II, Fig. 1.

are fragmentary perspective views showing modified forms of electrode construction.

Electrolytic cells ofthe kind to which my invention relates are composed of a considerable number of electrodes arranged in the alternate electrodes larity and all of the electrodes being composed of aluminum, magnesium, tantalum or other material upon which asymmetric conducting films may be produced and maintained when the electrodes are immersed in a suitable electrolyteL It' is important that each electrode shall present aslarge a surface area as possible to the action of the electrolyte in order that the capacity of the cell per unit volume may be sufliciently large for 1 effective operation.

My present invention is concerned with the production of an electrode of the char- .acter indicated that shall be composed of filming strip material wound spirally in spaced convolutionsand held in a suitable supporting ring. The successive convolutions composing the spirally wound electrode are preferably spaced apartby means of projections formed in the strip material Patented Sept. 13, 1921. 1917. Serial No. 15,9,961.

f Letters Patent.

Application filed April 5,

itself, and a plurality of electrodes, constructed 1n the manner described, are either superposed or placed vertically side-by-side in a suitable container, in which they are supported in any usual or convenient manner. For a more particular description of my lnvention, reference may be had to Figs. 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawing, which lllustrate an electrolytic cell comprising a circular'container 1 which may suitably be composed of seamless sheet metal and be preferably provided with a lining 2 of .aluminum or such other filming material as is employed for the electrodes ofthe cell. The open end of the container 1 is provided with a peripheral flange 3, to cover 4. Six vertical rods 5 are suspended from the cover 4 and support a series of superposed electrodesfi.

ljl ach of the electrodes 6 is composed ofa strip or ribbon? of aluminum or other film- 1ngmaterial wound spirally, as shown in F g. 1, and provided, at. suitable intervals, with transverse projections 8 which serve to to permit free circulation of the ficientl electrol larizing films thereon. In the construction shown in Fig. 1, the projections8 are formed in .the ribbon at such intervals that, when the material is wound into its spiral form, the projections will arrange themselves in somewhat each of the projections being spaced from the adjacent projections in the convolution which it touches. It will be observed that the distances between the projections, measured along the ribbon, increase progressively from the center to the circumference of the electrode.

The electrode spiral, after being wound to the desired diameter, is placed within an internally grooved ring 9 or other clamping device for confining and supporting the spiral coil. The coil support is preferably composed of the same yte and proper formation of the pothe manner shown in this figure,

material as the ribbon and is provided with three equally spaced tightly, placed within. the ring and then slightly unwound in order to cause it to enter the internal'groove in the ring, or one of the inner flanges 11 of the ring may be bent upward, the spiral inserted, and the flange bent-down into the position shown. In order to prevent the inner convolutions u o f the electrode spiral from bending laterally, a rod 12 is passed diametrally through the'convolutions-of the spiral and its sup- When thestrip-shown in Fig. is wound into a spiral, the projections 15 will sometimes coincide,-either wholly or in part, but the number of such coincident pairs of pro jections is relatively small and the resulting spiral is substantially the same as that shown in Fig. 1, except for the more irregular arrangement of the spacing projections.

Flg. 4 shows a further modification in the electrode construction, in which two strips 16 and 17 are spirally wound together. The strip 16 is provided with projections 18 which alternate on the two sides of thestrip,

while the strip :17 is without projections of any kind. When the two ribbons 16 and 17" are wound together, even spacing of the ribbons is insured, irrespective of the distances between the projections and the ribbon 16.

Fig. 5 shows astill further modification in which a continuously corrugated ribbon 19 iswound together: with a plain ribbon 20.

' ably greater than that which i s'aifordedby The effect of this constructionis substantially like that shown in Fig. 4, except that the efi'ective area of the corrugated ribbon 19, in proportion to its length, is considereither of the other forms of construction which I have shown herein.

The several electrodes composing the cell shown in Figs. 1 and 2 are so arranged, one

- above another, that the supporting lugs '10 of each electrode are in vertical alinement with the corresponding lugs of all of the electrodes belonging to .a set of the same polarity and are angularly spaced from. the

lugs belonging to electrodes of the set of opposite polarity. Each of the supporting rods 5, depending from the cover 4 of the cell, therefore engages all of the 'plates'of one polarity but none of the plates of the opposite polarity. The several plates are vertically spaced apart the proper distances by means of spacing sleeves 21 which surround the supporting rods -5 between the lugs 10, 'andthe lower electrode of each Set rests upon flanges or nuts 22upon the lower ends of the rods 5. Y

The upper and lower electrodes are of one-half the thickness of the intermediate electrodes since each of the intermediate electrodes cooperates with an electrode above and below it, while the upper and lower electrodes cooperate with one adjacent electrode only. A splash-plate 23 may be clamped between the cover 4: and the flange 3 of the container, suitable openings being. provided therein for the rods and spacing sleeves 5 and 21. Terminal devices 24 are secured to the upper ends of two of the suspension rods 5 which are associated with sets of electrodes of o'posite polarity.

hile I have illustrated certain forms of electrode construction which are well adapt- .ed to carry my invention into practice, it is to be understood that the principles of my invention may be employed in. various other constructions which ma readily be devised by persons skilled in t e art to which my invention relates. I therefore desire that the structural details which I have shown and described be taken as illustrative only and not as imposing limitations upon my invention, the scope of which is indicated in the appended claims.

I claim asmy invention: j

1 An electrode for electrolytic condensers, lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like comprising a spirally wound strip of filmin material and means integral with the said strip for spacing apart the convolutions of the said strip;

2. An electrode for electrolytic condensers, lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like comprising ajspirally wound strip of filming material provided with spaced integral corrugations serving to space apart the convolutions of thesaid strip.

3. An electrode for electrolytic condensers, lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like .comprising a spirally wound strip of film- 105 ing material provided with equally spaced integral corrugations serving to space apart the convolutions of the said strip.

4.. Anelectrode for electrolytic condensers, lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like 110 comprising a spirally wound strip of filming material provided with spaced integral corrugations and a plain strip of filming material disposed between the successive convolutions of the said corrugated strip.

5. An electrode for electrolytic condensers, lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like comprising a spirally wound strip of aluminumprovlded with equally spaced integral corrugations serving to space apart the con- 120 volutions of the said strip.

6. An electrode for electrolytic condensers,

I lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like comprising a spirally wound strip of aluminum provided with spaced integral corru- 125 gations and a plain strip of filming material disposed between the successive convolutions of the said corrugated strip.

7. An electrode for electrolytic condensers, gh n g r sters, rectifiers and the like 130 7 comprising a spirally wound strip of film ing material provided with spaced transverse corrugations and an internally grooved mng of filming'materi-al for confining and supvporting the said spirally wound strip and provided. with outwardly extending supporting lugs.

. num provided with spaced transverse corthe said spirally wound strip. 25

rugations and an internally grooved ring of aluminum for confining and supporting the said spirally wound strip and provided.

with outwardly extending supporting lugs. 9. An electrolytic cell comprising a c1r-' 'hular container and a plurality "of superposed electrodes disposed withinthe said container and supported therein in two sets of alternate electrodes, each of the said electrodes comprising a spirally wound strip of filming material and an internally grooved ring for confining and supporting 10. An electrolytic cell comprisin a circular container and a plurality 0 superposed electrodes disposed within the said container, and supported therein in two sets of alternate electrodes, each of the said electrodes comprising a spirally Iwound strip of aluminum provided with spaced transverse corrugations and an internally grooved ring for confining and supporting the said spirally wound strip.

11. An electrodefor electrolytic condensers, lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like comprisingva spirally wound strip of filming material 'and'a ring of filming material for confining and supporting the wound Strip.

12. An electrode tor electrolytic condensers, v

lightning arresters,- rectifiers and the like comprlsing a spirally wound strip of filming material formediwith spaced projections whereby'the convolutions are maintained in spaced relation and means formed of filming material for holding the spirally wound strip in position.

13. An electrode for electrolyticcondensers, lightning arresters, rectifiers and the like comprising a spirally wound strip of filmforming material, an internally grooved ring of film-forming material for confining and supporting the wound strip and a bracing rod of film-forming material passed through the strip.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscri lroed my name this 29th day of March,

the ring and the convolutions of 

